I saw this ad in the paper yesterday, and of course Peep Show was the first thing I thought of. The thing is though, in Peep Show, Jeremy is a bit of a pillock. Remember the episode where he tries to chat up some girls at a party with a line about olive oil? Something like: "So - olive oil! Fourth pressing? Fifth pressing? I always go for the first pressing. I mean, why wait 'til everyone else has had their fun with the olives?"

Exactly what I thought when I saw this - Jeremy is funny not because he's "cool", but because he's trying so desperately hard to be cool (and quite often just ends up looking silly). So in essence, they're saying Macs are for people who aren't especially cool but want to look/act like they are (and don't mind parting with more money to achieve it), which is perhaps not the message they were aiming for. Maybe by choosing this pairing for the ads, Apple themselves are trying to be cool and missing the point somewhat, too? (On a sidenote, I love Mitchell and Webb, for all their faults).

That's one of the things that dawns on you as you watch the show is that the two characters are equally worthless human beings. You start off siding with Jeremy because he's cooler, but then realise he's a wanker, so then Mark appears slightly better because he's on the surface a bit more kind... but then he turns out to be a prick as well.

Which I guess is spot on. Computers are a pain no matter which one you use!

That's one of the things that dawns on you as you watch the show is that the two characters are equally worthless human beings. You start off siding with Jeremy because he's cooler, but then realise he's a wanker, so then Mark appears slightly better because he's on the surface a bit more kind... but then he turns out to be a prick as well.

Which I guess is spot on. Computers are a pain no matter which one you use!

Daniel

Actually Aple has got it right - PCs are for humorless twits who want to see a deeper meaning in the Apple adds when they are just light-hearted commedy not related to a specific commedy show.

That's what I thought of first as well, and I'm under 30; I just like That Mitchell and Webb sound [bbc.co.uk]. Besides, Radio 4 is usually the starting place for good comedy. The Hitch-Hikers guide to the Galaxy, through Goodness Gracious me, to Dead Ringers all started on Radio 4. Along with the timeless classics such as just a minute and I'm sorry I haven't a clue, radio 4 makes good listening for anyone who likes good comedy, not just the over 30s (yes I know you were joking, but unfortunately, the "over 30s only"

Yes but Jeremy is a drugged-up idiot who can't get anything done. He's moved in to Mark's apartment because he can't get a job and is broke. And Mark is so uptight and full of self-loathing that he can't ever enjoy himself. He's neurotic and miserable.

You wouldn't want an OS modelled on either of them: it would either be useless (Jeremy) or no fun (Mark). To be honest, neither of them is in any way similar to Mac or Windows.

They just wanted the money so they whored themselves out. Nice work, chaps.

Or, you know, it's like they're NOT MEANT TO BE THE SAME CHARACTERS FROM THE SERIES? Most actors can pull that off. The only actor that just seems to remind me of the first place I saw him is the dude who played Agent Smith in the Matrix. Whenever I watch LOTR that's just one of the things that ruins it for me.

Perhaps Apple's marketing consultants need to go on a quick computer course - after all, only a Windows PC is vulnerable to the "140,000 viruses" and whilst, using Crossover Office, it's possible to run MS Office on Linux, this is not the norm.

In the UK, we have an Advertising Standards Agency that should stop misleading adverts - this looks to be a prime example for them now...

So what do you call:
* A PC running linux?
a PC* A mac bootcamped into windows?
a Mac* A mac running linux?
a Mac* etc?
boh?

I'm not sure about the GP, but "personal computer" does include "Macs" for me, and is about the hardware more than the software I load on it. I do realize that for most people, PC means "with Windows", but anyway, what do most people know about PCs?

to little to late, the press have conveniently 'bent' thechological terminology and the new terms have stuck in the mind of the public.Although I used to get annoyed about the miss use of 'PC' and correct anyone how spouted the 'windows PC' version, I now accept that the majority of the public know 'PC' as 'Windows PC'.On the other hand I do not get fed up correcting people on the use of the word Hacker, miscreants that break into systems illegally are Crackers !People interested in technology are Hackers.h [wikipedia.org]

They mention this in the Japanese Get A Mac ads. The PC is like, "Hey, aren't you kind of a PC, too?"The Mac, "Yeah, but people like me a lot, so they gave me this kind of a nickname, 'Mac.' Cool, huh?"PC, "What!? I want a nickname, too!""Oh, I know, since you're so into doing serious stuff, they could call you 'Work'!" ('Work' sounds like 'Mac' in Japanese.)

It was a pretty cute routine, but it doesn't work as well in translation. Also, I'm just going by my memory. And I'm only semi-fluent. But it was something like that.

That would be the least of the ASA's concerns... if I recall, the "I'm a Mac" ads play fast and loose with the truth in the first place. The ad that claims Macs "crash less" than Windows and demonstrates it by Hodgman "crashing" and "rebooting" periodically... says who, with what tests, hardware and drivers?

This American quite admires the ASA, or at least the idea of it... it would be nice to have the "commercial speech is free speech" decision overturned on this side of the pond...

The reality of it is not nearly as good as the idea. A few years ago I challenged the MPAA's ads claiming that "movie piracy funds terrorists!!!". The ASA accepted the MPAA's claim that an IRA member once got caught selling pirated cassette tapes at a car boot sale in the 1980's as evidence for that "fact".

Well, if they came out and said "I'm a PC running Windows", the ASA would be down on them like a ton of bricks because it would be an out-and-out slur on a competitor. "I'm a PC" is ambiguous enough for it not to be a direct jibe at Windows, so they can get away with it.A big difference in ads between the UK and US is that unless you've got a hard factual basis for a claim that you're better than the competition, you can't say it. So Halifax bank can say "we pay 50 times more interest than Natwest" as lon

A PC is computer of IBM decent, mostly running an OS and software of IBM DOS heritage. Although it is a GPC, it most runs a single major business application, with perhaps a few other minor functions, currently web browsing and mail. The PC is mostly a GPC, or a jack of all trades computer.

I loved them too (Peep Show series 1-3, M&W Sound series 1&2, M&W Look, the M&W stage show, etc. etc.). But I feel betrayed by this awful abomination. At the height of their careers, why are they already at the point where they will do anything for money?

"Here's the deal, folks. You do a commercial - you're off the artistic roll call, forever. End of story. Okay? You're another whore at the captialist gang bang and if you do a commercial, there's a price on your head. Everything you say is s

Yes, I'm an imbecile.As I said in my post, I followed Mitchell & Webb's career from their work on Radio 4, through Peep Show, the TV series, the stage show. I saw them move from obscurity through cult comedy to become almost mainstream. They have never failed to entertain, until now.

As Bill Hicks said, doing a commercial makes you a sell-out. That's not so bad if you are an actor, particularly one who is short of cash, but it is bad if you are a comedian (like Mitchell or Webb) and it is worse if you ar

Of course, the fact that both of them have done numerous voice overs in ads (both tv and radio) for ages means they became "sell outs" a while back.

It doesn't detract from the fact that they produce some damned funny work and will no doubt continue to do so for some time to come. Besides, why shouldn't they make some money while they are at the "height" of their careers? If the only way is down as you imply, then they'll need something in the old retirement fund.

"Oh, you know what Bill's doing, he's going for that indie dollar. That's a good market, he's very smart."

Oh man, I am not doing that. You fucking evil scumbags!

"Ooh, you know what Bill's doing now, he's going for the righteous indignation dollar. That's a big dollar. A lot of people are feeling that indignation. We've done research - huge market. He's doing a good thing."...

One advert makes the point that the 'PC' is a boring machine designed for boring office activities and the Mac is the free-spirited bundle'o'fun that'll bring joy an amusement to your home.
Then a couple of adverts later, they proudly tell you how your Mac'll run MS Office, a package which pretty much defines 'non-fun office stuff'

"Hello, Im a Mac, AND IM A PC. Im all about fun on holidays, looking cool and being a rebel. IM ALL ABOUT GAMES. I dont have any games. I DO, INFACT I HAVE SO MANY GAMES NO MATTER HOW MANY OF THESE ADS WE MAKE I WILL ALWAYS BE IN FRONT. Oh. YUP. So these ads wont do anything to help MacOS? NOPE. Bugger"

"I'm Linux and I'm free. And whilst you two have been busying yourselves arguing with each other, I've finished all of what I needed to do and I'm now off to the pub to spend the money I didn't spend on an operating system on a few pints of beer for myself."

more like "while you were arguing i've rebuilt my kernel, written my own drivers so now i can plug in my digital camera, and written a script to sort through my family photos, because i haven't got any software like iPhoto to do it all for me. but that's fun because i enjoy rebuilding my machine, and writing perl! maybe if i get some downtime i'll try to get my soundcard working. again."

1 I'm a Windows PC. I'm a crappy, bug riddled, OS which crashes frequently and is prone to getting "pwned" by 6 year old kids using copy & paste scripts. I'm a slut with syphilis.

2 I'm a MAC PC. I'm a reliable, pretty OS that only runs on overpriced hardware. I'm an effete snob.

3 I'm Linux. I'll run on almost anything but most of my desktop applications are simply not as good or usable as their Windows/MAC equivalents. I don't need consistency because everyone should "just do their own thing". I'm a hippy.

4 I'm *BSD. I spend most of my time locked in a cupboard quietly and reliably running all the important things on some old crappy hardware. I'm that weird guy down the road with an IQ of 260 and who's building a space shuttle out of old car parts.

Bah... If you ask me all PC operating systems are a bit crappy. If only we could have something which combined the development speed and hackability of Linux, the reliability and security of *BSD, the beauty of OSX and the consistency of behaviour and range of desktop programs of Windows. All running on commodity hardware. Maybe one day ?

If they are going to come out with versions for each country, the Canadian version will probably be patterned after Bob and Doug McKenzie [wikipedia.org]

Bob: G'day! I'm a Mac!Doug: And I'm a PC, eh?Bob: Today I'm gonna show you how I can run Microsoft Office applications, eh?Doug: No way, eh?! That's my job!Bob: Take off! Look at this chart that shows how much beer and back bacon I need to get me through the Stanley Cup Playoffs, eh?Doug: You hoser! That's not enough beer!Bob: Take off!

...they're still full of sh!t. What Apple fails to realize, or they do yet insist on falsely representing the facts, is that PCs are not made by Microsoft, only the OS is and even then not every PC uses Windows. The Vista upgrade ad is especially annoying considering the upcoming release of Leopard. How long do you think developers are going to support universal binaries? Leopard may be built to run on G4s and G5s as well as the Intel Macs but the G4s are not going to perform very well and the G5s are g

I'm not specifically looking for a notebook with a camera, it just so happens that the M2010 has one so there goes the Mac ads inference that only macs come pre-built with a camera in them. PCs did this BEFORE Apple anyway. As for my initial comment about who cares, Apple makes it seem like this is a killer feature of their notebooks. I doubt many Mac users turn the camera on except to play with the Photo Booth. I'd wager that the statistical margin of error would dwarf the number of users using iChat A

"Mac: I'm a Mac.PC: And I'm a PC.Mac: And I'm a PC.PC: What?Mac: Oh, I can run the latest version of Windows XP just like you!PC: But wouldn't that make me more secure than you, since I've got an Nforce4 Ultra motherboard, so I get Nvidia ActiveArmour installed from the moment my network card starts to function?Mac: But I AM very pretty."

"Mac: I'm a Mac.PC: And I'm a PC. I'm just trying to talk to the latest peripherals.Mac: I can do that too..PC: What?Mac: Oh, I can talk to that sexy little camera from Japan!Japanese Girl: Ohaiou Gozaimashda!Mac: Domo!PC: Hey Samsung-san, what operating system were the people who created you using?Japanese Girl: windosu ecksupee-san!PC: Ah, arigatou.Mac: But I AM very pretty."

Yeah, I got an Nforce4 motherboard, and I had to disable all that ActiveArmour stuff because I kept getting errors in just about every file I downloaded. Tried firmware and software updates and everything, problem still exists. Maybe next time I will buy a Mac, because they just work.

I'll admit it, I COULD have left it at 'Doesn't that mean you're just as insecure, user unfriendly, and hardware incompatible as you say I am?', but I just had to go the extra mile. It's not that I've got anything against Macs or Mac OSX. I've just got something against stretching the truth, and those commercials do just that.

I can't wait for Vista and other upgrades to XP to come out, including little photo apps and media apps. I mean, the iLife stuff is free on Windows (Picasa, IrfanView, WinAMP, WMP), so I won't really use the Vista included crap, just like I wouldn't use the very limited, basic iPhoto. But I can't wait until MS includes it in the OS, so Mac users will shut the fuck up.

If you think those are equivalent to iLife apps, it shows that you just haven't spent enough (or maybe any) time using both. What, for instance, are you claiming IrfanView is equivalent to? And are you _really_ saying that WMP is equivalent to iTunes? Yeah, they both play music. But, if that's your test, then a Mercedes is equivalant to a Kia.

As far as MS including useful apps in the OS, yeah, it'd be nice if they would do that. Maybe they'll get Vista right, time will tell. But having used both, I

If you think those are equivalent to iLife apps, it shows that you just haven't spent enough (or maybe any) time using both.

Actually I had OS X installed on my PC for a while, until I got really bored with it.

(shrug) fair enough.

What, for instance, are you claiming IrfanView is equivalent to? And are you _really_ saying that WMP is equivalent to iTunes? Yeah, they both play music. But, if that's your test, then a Mercedes is equivalant to a Kia.

I was excited about being able to use iPhoto, after hearing great things about it. But I found its photo management options poor.

Maybe I'm using it wrong, but - _what_ photo management are you trying to do? Categorize into albums & books? Got that. Sort by roll, or by date? Got that. Sort by filname or whatever metadata? Got that. Not sure what else I'd need. Maybe this is just a "your workflow habits would change going to a different tool", but that's hardly specific to iPhoto.

Picasa's or ACDSee's are better. And IrfanView is a better quick browser and slideshow viewer, with greater basic photo editing options than iPhoto. Everything about iPhoto is better in freeware or cheap Windows apps.

Well, I guess that's debatable. I'd rather have one app that does 90% of what I want, and, when I want to go outside, just right click on "edit with -> photoshop" to do the rest. Not sure what problem you have with the slideshows etc, I use irfanview on my windows systems, and iPhoto on my mac, and I don't see any functional difference. Far as that goes, if I just want a quick & dirty slideshow, apple's "preview" app is faster. But whatever.

iTunes is available for Windows, so I'm not sure why you're bothering to insist that it is something that makes Macs better.

Perhaps you have me confused with someone else. I was responding to someone (you? Another AC? It's _so_ hard to know/care) bringing up WinAMP and WMP, not someone talking about iTunes for PC vs iTunes for Mac.

Nevertheless, I use WinAMP more than iTunes because it has a great minimal interface usable while browsing the web.

Ah. I use this button up in the corner that shrinks the window down when I'm not using it for that purpose. Meets my needs...

You still haven't said anything actually better about the bundled apps than the free alternatives, so I'll continue considering the statement that "[Photos, video, and music are] easier on a Mac" to be bullshit.

Well it's not my statement, so I didn't know I had the onus to support someone else's point. Maybe you have me confused with someone else? ut in any case, YES, they are easier. You don't have to download 7 different programs from 5 different sources just to get a freshly loaded system ready to go. Also, the apps have a consistant user interface, very intuitive to use if you are able to break your workflow habits. It's fine if you don't _get it_, but that doesn't mean it's inferior, it just means you don't grok it, or just don't grok it yet.

Or are you now going to turn around and tell me that the Intel processor in Macs is somehow better at videos and music than the Intel Core 2 Duo in my PC?

I sense a lot of hostility, and quite frankly, have no interest in countering that. I have no idea why you'd assign a point of view to me on a topic that I haven't even touched on. CPU flavor has _nothing_ to do with application and OS usability. As you undoubtedly know.

Dude, that was like the first sentence of the summary! The link was the first word! Is it that hard to read even the first sentence of the FRIGGIN SUMMARY! I guess this is slashdot and that is asking a lot.

Then you probably had a bad stick of ram, apple doesn't sell magical hardware that's immune to faults. It always amazes me that people seems to just think that when they buy a mac and it crashes that this is normal, it's not, there is a hardward fault or there was an error when apple slaped a copy of the OS on it, macs should never have system wide crashes like, ever.

Or he tried to plug a firewire drive in. Every one I've tried blackscreens the mac instantly (identical to a bluescreen only it's black).

huh? i have 3 firewire drives right here attached to my powermac (one firewire ipod, a fw800 raid and a fw400 bus-powered 2.5" portable). the portable travels with me when i work out of town. thatdrive was plugged into my powerbook, my employer's powermac g4 and my copywriter's ibook g4 all within half an hour and not one kernal panic. in the 6 years i've been using os